Tara Mustapha’s imaginative and prescient to increase marginalised developers and create sustainable studios

Last week, the organizers of the London Video games Festival unveiled the 2025 cohort for its Ensemble initiative.

Curated by author and creative director Sharna Jackson, the exhibition showcases a brand-new group of underrepresented video game professionals in the UK annually.

Among the 2025 cohort is Tara Mustapha, CEO and founder of Code Coven. After leaving university, Mustapha began her journey in the video games sector at Backbone Entertainment in 2005.

From there, she took on roles as a game designer and producer for companies including Electronic Arts, Microsoft Game Studios, and Infusion, before co-founding Glow Up Games in 2018.

That same year, Mustapha established Code Coven. This global accelerator and academy aid underrepresented developers to reveal and highlight their skills, leading to opportunities, connections, and project funding within the industry.

“I didn’t wait for a seat at the table – I created my own platform and brought others along with me.”

“I aimed to craft the kinds of experiences that had impacted me significantly – but as I progressed through the industry, I kept encountering the same obstacles,” explains Mustapha. “Talented individuals were often overlooked, unsupported, or burned out – not due to a lack of talent but because they lacked networks, mentorships, and funding to succeed.”

“The independent aspect is that [working in games] has trained me for this. If you fail, you attempt again. You analyze, adapt, and iterate. If you want to port a game from PlayStation to a Nintendo DS, you don’t simply copy and paste – you redesign the experience to suit a new interaction. That’s how games operate. That’s how we, as developers, are meant to think.”

“And yet, when it comes to the industry itself, that mentality isn’t always adopted. Instead of progressing, obstacles remain. As a woman of color in games, I’ve needed to prove myself repeatedly, often in environments where people presumed I didn’t belong. I didn’t wait for a seat at the table – I created my own platform and included others with me.”

Mustapha describes Code Coven as an “ecosystem” rather than just a training program, designed to support underrepresented developers in revealing and showcasing their talents, resulting in industry opportunities, connections, and funding for their projects.

She states that launching Code Coven arose from “necessity, not merely passion,” due to a lack of infrastructure for nurturing marginalized developers.

“That’s why Code Coven was established,” Mustapha asserts. “We don’t just focus on skill pipelines; we ensure that marginalized developers, whether entering the industry or managing their studios, have access to training, funding, mentorship, and real-world industry connections. There was no system in place to tackle unconscious bias in an industry built around a homogenized viewpoint – one that often overlooked diverse talent and fresh ideas.”

“Talent alone isn’t sufficient in this industry. You require mentorship, community, and access to funding. Opportunities must be intentional. Code Coven is my way of ensuring that the upcoming generation of game developers doesn’t have to confront the same struggles I did.”

Mustapha adds: “We began modestly, but now, with initiatives like Aurora, we are not just teaching individuals how to create games – we’re assisting them in building sustainable studios that can thrive for years to come. In doing so, we’re molding a more resilient, innovative, and inclusive industry that reflects its players.”

Last October, the BFI National Lottery Innovation Fund awarded £510,000 to four pioneering initiatives within the UK’s video games sector, including Code Coven’s Aurora Accelerator and Agency – which is currently accepting applications from UK-based studios.

Mustapha describes Aurora as a “two-pronged approach” – an accelerator followed by sessions and resources based on what developers need to tackle the challenges they face.

The Aurora Accelerator provides industry advice and mentorship to navigate the gaming funding process, while the Aurora Agency offers advisors to assist developers in brokering deals, connecting with industry professionals, and attending events.

“Layoffs and studio closures are signs of a business model prioritizing rapid growth over long-term viability.”

“We understand what it’s like to be on that side of trying to close a deal, and have developed incredibly thick skin because of it,” says Mustapha.

“Unfortunately, many of the deals that